Blame It On The Rain

How The Weather Has Changed History And Shaped Cul ture

By: Laura Lee

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Paperback | 15 August 2006

At a Glance

Paperback
336 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
20.2 x 13.5 x 2.1

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An amazing, enlightening, and endlessly entertaining look at how weather has shaped our world.

Throughout history, great leaders have fallen, the outcomes of mighty battles have been determined, and the tides of earth-shattering events have been turned by a powerful, inscrutable force of nature: the weather. In Blame It on the Rain, author Laura Lee explores the amazing and sometimes bizarre ways in which weather has influenced our history and helped to bring about sweeping cultural change. She also delights us with a plethora of fascinating weather-related facts (Did you know that more Britons die of sunburn every year than Australians), while offering readers a hilarious overview of humankind's many absurd attempts to control the elements.

If a weather-produced blight hadn't severely damaged French vineyards, there might never have been a California wine industry. . . .
What weather phenomenon was responsible for the sound of the Stradivarius
If there had been a late autumn in Russia, Hitler could have won World War II. . . .
Did weather play a part in Truman's victory over Dewey

Eye-opening, edifying, and totally unexpected, Blame It on the Rain is a fascinating appreciation of the destiny-altering vagaries of mother nature—and it's even more fun than watching the Weather Channel!

Industry Reviews

"...a fast-paced little number that should help you get through a seasonal doldrum or two." -- Washington Post

"The History Channel meets the Weather Channel in Lee's breezy account. -- Newsday

"Refreshing and thought-provoking. " -- BookPage

"...crisp, direct, and playful while at the same time powerful." -- blogcritics.org

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You Can Find This Book In

Non-Fiction Nature & The Natural World The Earth & Natural History in General Weather & Climate Earth Sciences, Geography, Environment, Planning Earth Sciences Meteorology & Climatology Engineering & Technology Environmental Science Science Biology, Life Sciences Biographies & True Stories

Biographies Science, Technology & Medicine Biographies

Introduction	p. 1
Humans on the Brink of Extinction	p. 7
Noah's Flood	p. 11
The Population of Australia	p. 15
Sea Breezes Save Western Culture	p. 18
Tempestas Cooritur: The Battle of Teutoburg Forest	p. 25
Why the Sun Never Sets on the British Isles	p. 30
The First Kamikaze	p. 35
Loss of the True Cross	p. 40
Greenland's Vikings: Victims of Climate Change and Cultural Stubbornness	p. 45
The Treaty That Fell from the Sky	p. 52
My Pope's Better Than Your Pope: Lightning and the Great Schism	p. 56
The Mud That Made England	p. 61
The Fog of War	p. 67
Lost Siberians	p. 73
Which Witch Did This?	p. 79
A Protestant Wind Destroys the Spanish Armada	p. 84
Thanks to the Wind the Lost Colony Remains America's Greatest Mystery	p. 88
Gee, It's Cold in Russia, Part I: Charles XII Invades Russia	p. 92
The Secret of the Stradivarius	p. 97
Another Protestant Wind Blows a New King to England's Throne	p. 100
Ben Franklin and That Kite	p. 105
Through Many Dangers, Toils, and Snares	p. 110
Washington and the Weather	p. 117
Hail to the French Revolution	p. 124
Rain Ruins Robespierre	p. 129
The United Irishmen, the French, and the Rain	p. 135
A Slave Revolt Washed Away	p. 139
Gee, It's Cold in Russia, Part II: Napoleon Invades Russia	p. 145
Does That Star-Spangled Banner Yet Wave?	p. 152
Tecumseh Is Lost in the Fog	p. 159
The Water of Waterloo	p. 166
Gee, It's Cold in Russia, Part III: A Senseless War Extended by the Weather	p. 170
The Guy with the Sideburns Gets Stuck in the Mud	p. 178
The Storm That Saved Civil War Prisoners	p. 182
What Is That Guy in "The Scream" Afraid of?	p. 186
A Gust of Wind and Aviation Obscurity	p. 190
El Nino and Dashed Polar Dreams	p. 194
Cold Shaving and Jacob Schick	p. 199
The Failure of Forecasting and the Death of Lord Kitchener	p. 203
Rain Clouds Put an End to the Age of the Airship	p. 209
Gee, It's Cold in Finland: The Winter War	p. 214
Gee, It's Cold in Russia, Part IV: Hitler Invades Russia	p. 219
D-Day	p. 230
Blooming with Atoms: A New Cloud Formation, the Mushroom	p. 237
Sunshine over Hiroshima	p. 243
Misreading the Monsoons	p. 249
Dewey Defeats Truman	p. 254
Canadian Chill Saves a National Park from Nuclear Contamination	p. 257
Heat and the Powder Keg	p. 261
Making Monsoons	p. 267
Lucy and Her Friends	p. 274
Operation Thwarted by Desert Storm	p. 277
Meteorology and Rocketry	p. 283
Blood Rain and World War III	p. 289
Nature Does Not Carry a Passport	p. 293
Bibliography	p. 297
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Blame It On The Rain

How The Weather Has Changed History And Shaped Cul ture

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

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